Paper roll dispenser



April 19, 1966 H. GALBRAITH PAPER ROLL DISPENSER Enema/7w,

INVENTOR.

J EPBEPT Filed Nov. 29, 1963 E Z w/ United States Patent 7 3,246,937 PAPER ROLL DISPENSER Herbert Galbraith, 701 Silva St., Long Beach 7, Calif. Filed Nov. 29, 1963, Ser. No. 326,753 2 Claims. (Cl. 312-40) This invention relates in general to storage and dispensing devices, and more particularly to a storage and dispensing container for toilet paper rolls.

There are a number of commercial devices adapted to hold more than one roll of paper in order to avoid a situation wherein the supply is exhausted before an attendant is notified to replenish the supply. Generally such devices are designed to hold two rolls in tandem relationship. They usually do not supply a true storage facility, and seldom are they assurance of use of one roll only before the second is started.

It is an object of this invention to provide a convenient storage housing for toilet tissue rolls, which housing will permit obtaining a new roll to replace an exhausted roll without need to go to a remote storage area.

A further object 'of this invention is to provide convenient wall storage facilities for toilet tissue rolls.

For a full understanding of the invention, a detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the paper roll dispenser will now be given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the features forming the invention will then be specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

FIGURE 1 is a perspective View of a wall-mounted storage and dispensing device embodying the features of this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a partial front view of the device, with parts broken away to reveal the nature of a gate and dispensing means;

FIGURE 3 is a partial sectional view taken substantially along the line 3-3 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 4 is a perspective illustration of an alternate wall-recessed embodiment.

In FIGURE 1, a wall mounted embodiment of the invention is illustrated by a housing having a back wall 11 suitable for attachment to a building wall by any suitable means, but none has been illustrated. The balance of the housing is formed by side walls 12, 13, and 14, which jointly define a channel guide means for holding paper rolls in a longitudinal path with the axes of the rolls disposed transversally to said path. That is, the housing 10 has side walls which provide guide surfaces dimensioned to provide a longitudinal chamber in which toilet tissue rolls may be disposed with the axis of each roll oriented laterally of the axis of the chamber. It is a longitudinal through passageway dimensioned to receive toilet paper rolls at one end and dispense them from the other end. The most common roll size is one having a 4 /2" axial length, and a 4 /2" diameter. Thus, the passageway will be square in cross section.

The top of the housing thus defined is open for the purpose of receiving the paper rolls, and the front wall 13 is foreshortened to provide an opening 16 from which the rolls may be dispensed.

Usually, the housing 10 will be employed jointly as a storage device for several rolls, and a dispensing holder for a single roll, as opposed to the concept of dispensing an entire roll from the opening 16, although mere storage and full roll dispensing are fully within the concepts of this invention.

A groove 18 in the wall 12, and a similar groove 19 in the wall 14, as best seen in FIGURE 3, provide a means to insert and retract a roller 22. Roller 22 has end spindles 23 to fit into the grooves 18 and 19. Thus, a paper roll may be provided having a central open core in the conventional manner, and may be held upon the roller 22 as a spindle support. Thus, the roll can rotate about its central axis while being withdrawn in useable portions.

Additional rolls are held in the housing by means of a combination gate and dispensing means for causing the rolls of paper to pass thereby. Actually, the gate serves the purpose of blocking the passageway in such a manner that a roll of paper will not pass by of its own weight, and must be driven past the gate by a dispensing action.

The gate roller is indicated by a reference character 25. Roller 25 is mounted on end spindles 26 and 27 and carried by bearings 28 and 29. A hand drive wheel 30 is secured to the spindle 27 to provide a manual drive means for the gate roller 25.

Notches 31 and 32 in the side wall 12 and 14 respectively are dimensioned to receive the bearings 28 and 29. A cover plate 35 is secured over the face of the housing, and provides a removable enclosure for the gate roller 25, and also provides an end closure for the notches 31 and 32. Side shields 36 cover the scars made by the notches 31 and 32, and provide an additional enclosure for the notches, thus causing each notch to be a closed receptacle on three sides with the roller itself closing the fourth side.

Thus, a spring 37 may reside in the notch 32, and a spring 38 in the notch 31 and together will urge the gate roller to a position within the housing as deep as the dimension of the notches 31 aiid 32 will permit.

In this deep position within the housing, as best illustrated in FIGURE 3, there is not enough space in the through passageway of the housing to permit to normal roll of toilet tissue to drop past this roller 25, and hence the roller serves as a gate means to prevent passage of rollers until the gate is open.

The roller 25 is provided with a tread surface, and the preferred embodiment illustrates two such areas as indicated by the reference characters 39.

Therefore, as the hand wheel 30 is rotated in the direction of the arrow, the roller 25 will rotate in the same direction and cause the roll of paper in contact therewith to rotate in the opposite direction.

The paper roll is not confined to an axis of rotation. Therefore, upon drive movement of the roller 25 the paper roll will tend to wedge between the back wall 11 of the housing and the spring urged roller 25. This wedge action will force the roller 25 to compress the springs 37 and 38, to allow the roller to move away from the deepest path restriction area. Furthermore, rolls of toilet tissue are compressible. The central core is hollow and the paper is quite soft. Hence, the paper roll takes on an elliptical form, which together with the movement of the gate roller 25, will permit the paper roll to drop past the gate and into the bottom of the housing. Thus, the roll may be taken from the opening 16 to a separate dispensing mount where it is to be used, or may be mounted in the grooves 18 and 19 as provided in this housing.

Although viewing means may be employed to determine when the rolls have been completely dispensed from the container, the lack of a resistant feel through the wheel 30 after a roll has been dispensed will indicate that another roll has not engaged the roller 25, and therefore it is time to refill the housing.

An alternative means of using the housing, in new construction particularly, is to mount the housing into the walls between studs. If the particular partition wall into which the housing is to be mounted is typical framing dimension, the container may project somewhat into the room, but not to an appreciable distance. Otherwise, a Wall may be made sufliciently thick to accept a properly dimensioned housing if desired. Such an alternate construction and mounting is shown in FIG. 4. Substantially, the

container and a decorative closing lid 40 for the top opening of the housing.

While the instant invention has been shown and described herein in what is conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is recognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention which is therefore not to be limited to the details disclosed herein but is to be afforded the full scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A storage and dispensing means for toilet paper rolls,

comprising:

a housing chamber defining a longitudinal through passageway having a longitudinal axis having a first and second end adapted to receive toilet paper rolls at one said end and dispense them from the other end;

a drive roller rotatably positioned across said housing adjacent one side thereof on resilient mounting means;

said mounting means including coil spring means urging said roller towards said longitudinal axis to provide a seat upon which the rolls may rest, said roller being yieldably held by said mounting means for movement toward and away from said longitudinal axis, said mounting means including bracket means for slidably receiving said roller, said bracket means having a channel portion for receiving said roller for sliding movement towards and away from said longitudinal axis; and

means to rotate said roller;

whereby, a paper roll will lie in said chamber blocked against passage by said roller until said roller is rotated in a direction to cause a roll to wedge between said roller and the chamber housing, thereby retracting the roller against said mounts and forcing the roll to pass thereby.

2. In a storage and dispensing container for paper rolls, vertical channel guide means for guiding a plurality of paper rolls therealong, said guide means having a longitudinal axis and a lower portion, a plurality of cylindrical paper rolls movably positioned within said guide means, each of said rolls having a cylindrical surface and a, central axis disposed transversely of the longitudinal axis of said guide means, and gate and dispensing means for blocking free passage of said rolls along said guide means and for driving said rolls along said lower portion of said guide means, said gate and dispensing means movably mounted transversely of said longitudinal axis of said guide means adjacent said lower portion thereof, said gate and dispensing means including movable drive surface means for drivingly contacting said cylindrical surface of one of said rolls for driving the same along said lower portion of said guide means, said drive surface means resiliently movably mounted for movement toward and away from said longitudinal axis of said. guide means upon movement of said'one of said rolls along said portion of said guide means, said gate and dispensing means further including resilient means for urging said drive surface means toward said longitudinal axis.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 373,301 11/1887 Onderdonk 221-259 X 1,259,927 3/1918 Swift 221259 X 2,307,994 1/ 1943 Clemens 312-39 2,605,975 8/1952 Page et a1. 242-55.3 3,130,932 4/1964 Pena 242-553 CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner.

FRANK L. ABBOTT, Examiner. 

1. A STORAGE AND DISPENSING MEANS FOR TOILET PAPER ROLLS, COMPRISING: A HOUSING CHAMBER DEFINING A LONGITUDINAL THROUGH PASSAGEWAY HAVING A LONGITUDINAL AXIS HAVING A FIRST AND SECOND END ADAPTED TO RECEIVE TOILET PAPER ROLLS AT ONE SAID END AND DISPENSE THEM FROM THE OTHER END; A DRIVE ROLLER ROTATABLY POSITIONED ACROSS SAID HOUSING ADJACENT ONE SIDE THEREOF ON RESILIENT MOUNTING MEANS; SAID MOUNTING MEANS INCLUDING COIL SPRING MEANS URGING SAID ROLLER TOWARDS SAID LONGITUDINAL AXIS TO PROVIDE A SEAT UPON WHICH THE ROLLS MAY REST, SAID ROLLER BEING YIELDABLY HELD BY SAID MOUNTING MEANS FOR MOVEMENT TOWARD AND AWAY FROM SAID LONGITUDINAL AXIS, SAID MOUNTING MEANS INCLUDING BRACKET MEANS FOR SLIDABLY RECEIVING SAID ROLLER, SAID BRACKET MEANS HAVING A CHANNEL PORTION FOR RECEIVING SAID ROLLER FOR SLIDING MOVEMENT TOWARDS AND AWAY FROM SAID LONGITUDINAL AXIS; AND MEANS TO ROTATE SAID ROLLER; WHEREBY, A PAPER ROLL WILL LIE IN SAID CHAMBER BLOCKED AGAINST PASSAGE BY SAID ROLLER UNTIL SAID ROLLER IS ROTATED IN A DIREDTION TO CAUSE A ROLL TO WEDGE BETWEEN SAID ROLLER AND THE CHAMBER HOUSING, THEREBY RETRACTING THE ROLLER AGAINST SAID MOUNTS AND FORCING THE ROLL TO PASS THEREBY. 